HOUSTON – (Oct. 1, 2013) – The U.S. government shutdown is underway, bringing with it a wide range of political and economic consequences. Two Rice University experts are available to comment on the shutdown’s political and economic impacts:

Paul Brace, the Clarence L. Carter Professor of Political Science.

John Diamond, the Edward A. and Hermena Hancock Kelly Fellow in Public Finance at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and an adjunct professor of economics.

Brace can discuss the politics at play in shutdown negotiations and what this development means for President Barack Obama. Diamond can discuss the shutdown in the context of key federal budget and economic variables.

“Having failed to stop the Affordable Care Act (ACA) at initial passage, before the Supreme Court, in the election of 2012, or in numerous attempts to legislatively defund or derail the program since, at the eleventh hour a faction of the Republican Party within the House sought to delay implementation of the ACA for one year or shut down the federal government immediately,” Brace said. “While some might view a delay as practical, cynics could reasonably conclude it is merely a ploy to afford more opportunities to block the ACA.”

Rice University has a VideoLink ReadyCam TV interview studio for media who want to schedule an interview with Brace. ReadyCam is capable of transmitting broadcast-quality standard-definition and high-definition video directly to all news media organizations around the world 24/7. The Baker Institute has a radio and television studio available for media who want to schedule an interview with Brace.

To schedule an interview with Brace or Diamond, contact Jeff Falk, associate director of national media relations at Rice, at jfalk@rice.edu or 713-348-6775.

Founded in 1993, the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University in Houston ranks among the top 20 university-affiliated think tanks globally and top 30 think tanks in the United States. As a premier nonpartisan think tank, the institute conducts research on domestic and foreign policy issues with the goal of bridging the gap between the theory and practice of public policy. The institute’s strong track record of achievement reflects the work of its endowed fellows and Rice University scholars. Learn more about the institute at www.bakerinstitute.org or on the institute’s blog, http://blogs.chron.com/bakerblog.